ELIJAH'S GRIEF
by MistressLynell
Summary: "I am beginning to wonder who it is you grieve for, Elijah." Elijah deals with the news of Klaus' death and all that it implies for his family. POST 3X22 ONE SHOT. Reviews are appreciated.


**ELIJAH'S GRIEF**

A _The Vampire Diaries _One-Shot

* * *

He stood silently within the living room, the crystal glass of brandy held firmly within his hand. The window he stared out of was being pelt with rain, the pitter patter of it all the only sound that could be heard within the entire mansion. It obstructed his view of the outside world. It didn't much matter. He was staring out into an oblivion that superseded the natural world. He was staring into his own obscurity, lost in his thoughts.

So much had happened in the course of one day that it made him stoic with shock.

He'd lived for a millennium now. And in those centuries of living he had forgotten how much power a single day could have on his life. It was such an inconsequential amount of time to an immortal such as him. A day held so little potential, so little meaning. He could not remember the last time just one day had impacted him such as this. The idea of it all brought him back down to earth. It humbled him. It made him feel… _mortal_.

Or maybe it was the death of his brother that had brought this onslaught of feelings. Since their transition and learning of their brother's heritage they had all thought of him as invincible. He held all the power of both breeds of supernatural creatures yet was plagued by none of their curses. Even he, the eldest of them all, had seen his little brother as purely unassailable.

But he'd been wrong.

Throughout their time together on this pitiful planet it was soon forgotten to both of the brothers that Klaus was the younger of the two. It had become apparent that Niklaus no longer had need of his older brother's protection and in that false realization, Elijah had forgotten how to protect him, forgotten that he _needed_ to protect him. It was his duty as an older brother despite the fact that he had lived long past the normal lifespan of a "normal" older brother. But his failure to do what was his birth given responsibility reminded the eldest Original of that duty.

But it was too late.

Niklaus was dead.

Every time Elijah forced himself to deal with that realization more and more of him broke inside. Though his brother and he had been on the outs with each other that did not mean that Elijah did not love Niklaus much like any older brother would love their younger sibling. He'd suffered impossible dishonor at the hands of his brother. Still, he had made a plea for his life. He had meant to teach Niklaus a lesson. He had not meant to lose his brother for all eternity. An eternity without Niklaus? Some might see that as a reprieve, a blessing. Elijah simply looked at it as one of the bleakest moments in his long life.

Tenuously he lifted the glass to his lips, sipping the strong liquid and continuing to stare out into the wild. It seemed that nature was against them this night. The rain seemed to be releasing itself in torrents, mimicking the emotion that was raging inside of the Original. He would not show it, of course. That would go against all that had been instilled with him since birth. Of course he had shed tears for his brother's demise. But the anger? The hurt? The rejection? The hopelessness? No. Those were all components of Elijah's grief that he kept tucked away, determined to deal with them in his own solemn way.

Society would suffer if he chose to deal with such emotions in any other way.

The door to the mansion opened and shut. Soon footsteps could be heard ascending in his direction. A new presence entered the room but he did not even need to turn to see who it was.

"Kol will be arriving tomorrow."

Ah yes… Kol. He had left several voice messages for his youngest living brother but it was not until Rebekah had made the call that any acknowledgement was made by the youthful Original. Elijah could only imagine it was because Kol felt much like Rebekah seemed to feel: Rejected by Elijah. His lack of loyalty to his family had not gone unnoticed.

Turning now to look upon his sister he realized that she had been caught within the storm. Her hair hung wetly about her shoulders, the silver drops cascading down her face and neck. Her clothes seemed unaffected, probably thanks to the speed in which she'd used to arrive at their homestead.

"Good," Elijah replied, taking another sip from his glass. He watched his sister as she entered the room a little further, her blue eyes casting an unreadable look in his direction. Rebekah. Elijah's heart pained to think of what she had become. Though it had been a thousand years ago, Elijah still remembered her to be that same little girl who had rested upon the fantastical idea of her brothers being heroes in their own right. Now her heart had been blackened by centuries of abuse and of loss. She had turned into someone nearly unrecognizable to him. She had lost all of herself except for her damnable temper that outranked all of her brothers'. She maneuvered through life with no remorse, it seemed. At least she had shown none after her decision to kill the doppelganger, Elena Gilbert.

Elena… Sweet, beautiful, brave Elena. She had been another victim of their mother's actions, though it had been Rebekah that ultimately led Elena to her demise. Elijah's heart had broken twice tonight after he had heard what his precious little sister had done.

"Will you be staying here, Elijah?"

The question was not unexpected, but Elijah still had no answer for his sweet Rebekah that he thought she would like. "I don't see why any of us would stay, Rebekah. Have we not caused enough trouble and grief in this town?"

"This is our home," Rebekah answered.

Elijah shook his head, his brown bangs swaying against his forehead which was creased with exhaustion and grief. "We have left fingerprints all over the world, Rebekah. I don't think we have the right to call any place _home_."

"But Niklaus-"

"Niklaus is gone," Elijah snapped. "And just because he put us together a house does not mean that it is a home. Nothing but mayhem and chaos has been instigated within these walls."

Rebekah scowled at her eldest brother, but he did nothing but remain impassive in her tone of voice. "Then perhaps we should just burn it to the ground."

Her words were bitter and they caused Elijah's heart to clench within his chest. Yes, his dear young sister had been lost to him. Nothing was left but a shell of the girl he used to know. "Perhaps we should."

Clearly unhappy with his response, Rebekah turned to leave the room. Her arms wrapped about herself as she stomped and he waited for her flourish of an exit to be over so that he could once again be alone to process his thoughts. She had all but completely exited when she stopped, speaking over her shoulder. "I am beginning to wonder who it is you grieve for, Elijah." The words were whispered, but he'd picked them up with his advanced hearing. With that, Rebekah relinquished her brother over to the silence of loneliness.

* * *

He had not heard anything else from Rebekah for hours. She had retreated to her room and had nothing else to do with him since their altercation. Elijah knew that he should be with his sister, comforting her after the death of Niklaus. Though it pained him to admit, Niklaus and Rebekah had a bond that none of the other siblings could touch. Elijah had never been fond of the influence that Niklaus had had on their sister, but that did not mean that he could contest the love which Niklaus had always seemed to hold in his eyes for their dear Rebekah. Though the pact had been between the three siblings, it was Niklaus and Rebekah whom had remained the closest. Even in times when Elijah could have stood by their side, he hadn't.

Without Niklaus, what would become of Rebekah?

Thoughts of his brother haunted Elijah as he wandered the halls of their ornate home like a ghost. He had replenished the whiskey in his glass a multitude of times, losing count after the twentieth. It was just now, though, that he was beginning to feel the effects of it all. He had hoped that the alcohol would numb him to the accosting grief he couldn't seem to shake. The bitter liquid had only exasperated all of his feelings instead, leaving Elijah cold and bereft.

It had taken some time and multiple marches past the room, but finally Elijah entered Klaus' "studio." An unfinished canvas seemed to be the centerpiece of it all. Elijah had always envied his younger brother's artistic talent. It had also amused him that so brutal of a man could also be so masterful and patient. Elijah could not remember a time in his travels with his brother where Niklaus had _not_ stopped to practice and inquire with an artist of some sort. Niklaus had always preferred the more humble artists. At first Elijah had assumed this was because they would not be missed if Niklaus decided to eat them. However, his little brother had never touched his makeshift teachers… just watched them as they worked, taking mental notes here and there. Niklaus had evolved his own techniques, however, and was now a master in his own right. His art was beautiful.

His mind a haze of grief and liquor, Elijah absentmindedly began to thumb through the sketches that littered Niklaus' "desk." The top sketches were of the blonde girl here in town… What was her name? Caroline? Apparently his brother had developed an affinity for this baby vampire. That surprised Elijah; Niklaus had not focused his attention on any one female (save Rebekah) in quite some time. The thought of his brother opening up that side of himself made Elijah's eyes burn with another bout of unshed tears. Such human traits were rarely seen in Niklaus. It gave Elijah hope that there was still some humanity left in his brother, still some hope…

Not that it mattered now.

Sifting further down the pages, Elijah was met with images of all sorts. Some were of people idly walking down city streets. Some of the sketches held detailed images of nature and all of the beautiful scenery that Klaus had laid eyes on during his travels. Some were of trivial items such as fruit or jewelry. All were beautiful, handcrafted from the able and skilled hands of a killer.

And then Elijah came upon one of the last sketches. It was old, he was certain of it. The paper was of a different texture, one Elijah was familiar with due to his years of penning letters. This was before the printing press. Ancient in the eyes of a mortal, Elijah was afraid that if he touched the paper it would crumble in his hands. Still he had to reach out and trace it. He had to ensure that it was real.

Lifting the sketch from its place on the table, Elijah's hazel eyes drifted over it. The picture held the smiling face of Rebekah in its frame. It was a genuine smile, one that Elijah had not seen grace his sister's lips in quite some time. Behind her, though, were more figures. Elijah stood with his bare arms crossed in the sketch, Finn angling off against him. They must have been having some sort of conversation, but their eyes were light with humor. Kol and Henrik were not too far off from them, both lying on the ground and fiddling with sticks. They had always played with whatever small sticks or twigs they could find. They liked to build homes out of them to pass away what little free time they had.

Mikael and Esther were nowhere to be seen.

Is this what Niklaus thought about when he thought of their family? His sister smiling brightly at him, his brothers content to speak and play amongst themselves without quarreling or bickering? Is this what his little brother had dreamed of having again now that his house was complete?

Elijah realized he was crying when tear drops began to drop down onto the sketch that he held in his trembling hand. For so long he had thought that his brother had forgotten what their family was meant to be. And maybe he had. But this sketch was proof that Niklaus had once known what their family could have been, _should _have been.

"Niklaus…" Elijah whispered into the silence of the room. Suddenly all that torment that he had bottled up inside of him came out in a heavy flood of anger. Careful not to let go of the sketch in his hand, Elijah threw the glass he'd been holding with such raw anger that it not only smashed against the wall, it created a crater within the drywall.

Finn was dead, _truly_ dead. His younger brother had been a pompous ass, yes… but there had been a time when Elijah had actually enjoyed his brother's presence. But Finn had betrayed them all, tried to aid their mother in destroying them. His loss pained Elijah but only for the briefest of moments. For 900 years he had dreamed of freeing his brother only to find that Finn had planned to annihilate them all in the name of their "abominable existence." Still… there had been a time… there had.

Niklaus had complained about Kol's rambunctious behavior for what felt like eons. Elijah knew, though, that Niklaus was only bothered by his brother's youthful and sadistic spirit because he did not recognize his own personality weaved within Kol's. Though Kol was a bit more impetuous than Niklaus, it was evident that they were cut from the same cloth… But Kol had not always been so vile and rebellious. There was a time when he was a wide eyed boy doing all he could to keep up with his older brothers. Always a prankster, the house was never dull with Kol's constant antics. His ability to bring laughter to them all, however, helped keep them together.

…And Rebekah. Oh… poor, _sweet_ Rebekah. He could remember her like she was in that sketch. She had been full of youth and naivety, wanting nothing more than to explore the world and make her own mark within it. Of course her brothers staved her impulsiveness. They'd even made it nearly impossible for her to find any suitor to begin her only family with. But Rebekah had known that they'd loved her, known that they'd protect her… That's why she smiled. She smiled because she knew that they all had a future ahead of them. A future meant to be shared together. But now… Elijah knew his sister would never smile at him like that again. Her heart was dead in more than just the literal sense.

"'Lijah?"

He had not even heard her enter the room. He was thankful that his back was to her at this very moment. Undoubtedly roused by the sudden crashing sounds, she'd come to check up on him. Elijah had been foolish to think she'd do anything different.

"I'm sorry if I woke you, Rebekah," Elijah stated flatly after he'd cleared his throat.

She was moving towards him, tentatively. He could hear her footsteps come closer before stopping a mere foot behind him. Carefully he glanced over his shoulder. His sister was not looking at him. She was looking at the desk on which the sketches sat, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. It was evident by the emotion that plagued her face that Rebekah was suffering the same torment as Elijah. Maybe even more so. She'd attended Niklaus as he witnessed all the beautiful things that he sketched and painted and sculpted.

"I can't sleep. If I sleep, I'll dream of him. I'm sure of it." She spoke so definitively, almost with anger. "I always dreamed of him whenever we fought. I spent nearly a century dreaming of him daggering me and placing me in that coffin, of stealing yet another man I loved away from me." Her words were growing softer now.

Elijah took a chance to turn towards her now, his red eyes betraying his normal impassive state. She was crying, the tears falling about her cheeks silently. She didn't even wipe them away. Instead she turned from the sketches and met his hazel eyes with her beautiful blue ones. "Still, I would choose those dreams for an eternity if it meant I never had to face one where my brother is burning within a coffin." Her voice broke on the final words and Elijah was there in an instant, holding his sister as a sob ripped through her making him shudder involuntarily against him.

"Rebekah…" Elijah whispered against his sister's hair as she curled against him, her face within his suit jacket. His large hand made its way to the back of her head, fingers lacing within blonde hair. His other arm curled around her shoulders, the sketch still held tight within his grasp.

"It was awful, 'Lijah," Rebekah murmured through her tears. "He was still alive. He could see it. Nik… Oh, he was so confused! I know he must have thought how I could let that happen. I was right there, 'Lijah!" She sobbed. "Right there…"

Tears were now dripping from his own eyes and down to his chin and lips. He didn't know who he was crying for now. His heart broke for both of his younger siblings. Though Niklaus was the one who had truly died, he felt as if though Rebekah was lost to him now as well. She'd defined her life by Niklaus and now had lost the only "stable" influence that had kept her going, kept her in line. He had never seen Rebekah mourn such for a man, even after the death of Alex. She was shattered. "There was nothing that you could have done."

That didn't calm her. "I could have tried harder, Elijah!" she called into his jacket. Her hands clung to the finely spun material so hard that Elijah feared it might rip under her grasp. He didn't dare move or hinder his little sister now, though, as this was the first time in what felt like centuries that he'd seen Rebekah show anything but anger.

"And if you had, Rebekah?" Elijah questioned, his voice growing firmer now despite the tears still freefalling about his handsome face. "Who is to say that you would not have been the next victim? Was I to mourn two siblings tonight instead of one?"

She had no answer for that. Her sobs became more violent and she sunk to the floor, Elijah coming with her to cradle her just as he had when she was a little girl. "Mother, Father, Finn… and now Niklaus," she all but screamed into the cloth.

He spent the next hour holding her as she cried; he was unable to find any rational words to soothe her. When she seemed to have exhausted herself, she finally relinquished her grasp on him and lifted her head. She rested the side of it against his chest as she stared blankly at the wall he'd moved to rest against. Elijah realized that his hand was still stroking his sister's hair. He could not remember the last time he had been so intimate with his sister. These bouts of depression and pain were something Rebekah had learned to deal with on her own, most centering on Niklaus.

"You asked me who I grieved for," Elijah whispered. He then realized that his own voice was hoarse from his anxiety and that Rebekah's hair had become wet with his own freshly shed tears. "Do you want to know?"

Rebekah sniffled against him. She continued to stare bleakly at some unknown point on the wall, though she never made a move to remove herself from her brother's lap. "I don't think I'll be able to bear it if you say Elena," she whispered in return. "I cannot bear to know that my brother grieves a simple woman over the death and destruction of his family."

Elijah wished his sister knew how wrong she was. Yes, he did mourn Elena's death. He had viewed Elena as a very brave, young individual. Her face was that of Tatia's and Katerina's… but Elena was much, _much_ different. Elijah had formed a fondness for Elena, but not one that he knew could form into love. It was more of an admiration and he despised the fact that the young girl had to die in order to save his family. His family was supposed to be invincible… not hinged on the life of a mortal female.

For the first time since their caving, Elijah gave notice to the sketch still held in his hand. He brought it up, easing Rebekah to her own sitting position and shifting the sketch between the sparse amounts of room she would allow him to disconnect from her. Elijah had expected Rebekah would take the picture immediately. Instead she only stared at it with tired crystal eyes.

"I grieve for our family, Rebekah."

The words, spoken out loud at last, impacted them both on a deep level.

Rebekah said nothing return.

They both simply stared at the sketch until their vision blurred.

* * *

He stood in the doorway of her room, watching her. She'd fallen asleep hours ago, and – just as she had suspected – she'd been plagued by nightmares. She'd not woken once, her subconscious giving her no reprieve. Rebekah simply thrashed about under her covers, her face etched with desperation and pain.

It broke his heart.

Centuries together had made Niklaus a major imprint on all their hearts. Watching Rebekah now and feeling all his own inner turmoil still boiling and raging within him, Elijah knew that it would take just as long for them to finish mourning for their brother… if they ever did at all.

"Goodbye, Niklaus," Elijah whispered into his brandy glass before taking another sip. He then turned from his sister's room and sped down the stairs to welcome Kol as he entered the driveway.

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: I think I need to make it clear right now that I absolutely **_**abhor**_** Elena Gilbert. I have not liked her since the beginning of the show and I **_**really**_** do not like her now that she's had a direct hand in killing one of the – in my opinion – best characters I've seen thus far (Kol Mikaelson.) However, though it pains me to admit it, I knew there was a certain "attraction" between Elena and Elijah… so it had to have a place in this story.**

**I love The Originals. I love that they're getting their own spinoff. Elijah, though, is by far my favorite even though it is Rebekah that I've taken to roleplaying as on a popular RP forum. **

**I hope you enjoyed this short little one-shot that I literally cried while writing. I could not imagine losing one of my younger siblings (I'm the oldest of six.) And I thought it would be nice to see a small break in Elijah's usually so demure demeanor. **

**Please review!**

**Thanks. **

**xo,**

**MistressLynell**


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